Zack Snyder gave his blessing for General Zod to appear in The Flash

Man of Steel star Michael Shannon has revealed that he asked for Zack Snyder’s blessing before agreeing to reprise his role as General Zod in The Flash.

Michael Shannon had big boots to fill when he played General Zod in Man of Steel. Terence Stamp’s performance in Superman II is an all-timer, turning the character into one of the most terrifying villains in the history of superhero movies.

But Shannon put his own spin on the baddie, making Zod sympathetic, while still very scary. And while Shannon thought he was done with the character, the team behind The Flash had other ideas, writing him into their script.

But before he said yes to the project, Shannon needed the blessing of his Man of Steel director Zack Snyder, who cast him as Zod in the first place.

Zack Snyder gave his blessing for General Zod to appear in The Flash

“I was hesitant because I wasn’t really happy about what happened to Zack Snyder in that whole deal,” Shannon tells The Playlist, in reference to Joss Whedon replacing Snyder on the Justice League movie.

“I really love Zack. The fact that Zack asked me to play that part to begin with – that’s probably the biggest surprise of my career. It almost felt like a practical joke. I was like, ‘You’re kidding me, right?’

“But I talked to [The Flash director] Andy [Muschietti] about it, and I liked Andy, and I said, ‘Andy, look – I just want to get Zack’s blessing on this because it just doesn’t feel right without that.’

“Zack, to his credit, was very understanding. He gave me his blessing, and I went to do it.”

Why General Zod is different in The Flash

Due to multiverse shenanigans, Michael Shannon added that General Zod in The Flash isn’t General Zod from Man of Steel, meaning the film doesn’t tread on the toes of its predecessors.

“It’s just really different – these kind of multiverse situations,” Shannon tells The Playlist. “The story is a lot more all over the place, you know? And I feel like I mainly exist in The Flash as, like, an obstacle or a problem. Whereas, in Man of Steel, it was more of a story. Like, The Flash is definitely about The Flash – as it should be. So, it’s not as in-depth.”

The Flash speeds into cinemas on June 16, 2023, while you can read more about the movie here.